At this year’s National Medical Student Meeting over the weekend in Atlanta, 750 medical students were in attendance from every year of medical school and many institutions across the country.
The AMA Medical Students Section (MSS) programs included advising on how to get published and succeed in a research career, an introduction to the fundamentals of advocating for Graduate Medical Education funding and empowering medical students to engage in conversations about end-of-life care. In addition, the MSS welcomed Keynote Speaker, Tao Le, MD, to provide advice on USMLE Step 1.
At the 13th annual AMA Research Symposium on Friday, nearly 400 medical students, residents and fellows, and international medical graduates presented posters on their research. Winners were announced Friday evening and the following medical students were recognized:
Overall Winners
- Poster: Maxine Warren, Emory University School of Medicine
- Podium: Kishor Jayakumar, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
Category Winners
- Biochemistry: Michael Lause, Ohio State University College of Medicine
- Clinical outcomes: Kathleen Wiest, University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine
- Immunology: Eun Beattie, SUNY School of Medicine, Buffalo
- Improving Health Outcomes: Taylor Wallen, Central Michigan College of Medicine
- Neurobiology: Tanya Khasnavis, Medical College of Georgia School of Medicine
- Public Health: Nicole Sitkin, Yale University School of Medicine
- Radiology: Fazila Aseem, Wake Forest University School of Medicine
- Surgery: Jae Kim, University of Central Florida College of Medicine
Also on Friday, the MSS National Service Project partnered with the Minority Affairs Section and together conducted two successful, Doctors Back to School™ visits at local elementary schools in Atlanta. Over 40 medical student volunteers presented entertaining exhibits to the students, teaching healthy eating, anti-bullying, asthma, safety and exercise. The visits encourage minority students to consider a career in medicine.
The AMA-MSS considered topics including clinical documentation and studying the use of incentives to increase the national organ donor pool. The reference committee had drafted a final reference committee report using testimony presented online via its Virtual Reference Committee.
This year represented the fourth implementation of the completely virtual testimony process. The Virtual Reference Committee generated more than 242 posts and offered the opportunity for all medical student members to provide testimony on the items of business, regardless of whether they were able to attend the meeting.
The clinical skills workshop was held on Saturday afternoon and drew a crowd of approximately 200 medical students. It featured hands-on training in airway management, blood pressure checks, ultrasound administration, casting and suturing.
The section elected Omar Maniya, Georgetown University School of Medicine, to the AMA Board of Trustees 2016-2017, and Christopher Libby, University of Massachusetts Medical School, as MSS Governing Council Chair-Elect 2016-2017.
